Oprah Winfrey Named Forbes' Most Influential Person of 2013

Thursday

Mar 14, 2013 at 3:30 PM

Oprah Winfrey has been named Forbes' most influential person of 2013, topping their list for the second year in a row.According to a research survey which ranks more than 7,500 celebrities on 46 different personality attributes 48 percent ...

TV Guide

Oprah Winfrey has been named Forbes' most influential person of 2013, topping their list for the second year in a row.

According to a research survey - which ranks more than 7,500 celebrities on 46 different personality attributes - 48 percent of people rated Winfrey as influential, down only one point from 2012. Winfrey's network OWN saw an uptick over the last year as she landed major interviews with the likes of controversial athlete Lance Armstrong in the wake of his doping scandal and the late Whitney Houston's family.

Just below her at 47 percent was Steven Spielberg, whose film Lincoln was nominated for an Academy Award this year, with its star Daniel Day-Lewis taking home the statue for Best Actor. Spielberg was nominated for Best Director, but Ang Lee took home that prize for his adaptation of The Life of Pi.

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Following them on the list are prolific Hollywood directors Martin Scorcese at 42 percent, Ron Howard at 41 percent and George Lucas at 41 percent.

Surprisingly, Michael J. Fox, who came in at No. 2 last year, dropped down to No. 13 this year. That could change next year once his NBC comedy gets on the air.